James Beaty: OPINION: RAMBLIN': Following the sun: A total eclipse playlist

Apr. 14—I really didn't think about it before we started, but some sounds over the airways provided lots of fun on the trip from McAlester to Broken Bow to view the total eclipse of the sun.

I'm talking about an eclipse playlist streamed by Spotify on the radio inside Derrick James' SUV as we headed toward Beavers Bend State Park last Monday, April 8, with Derrick driving and myself riding shotgun.

Soon we were zipping down the highway, with packed clusters of green trees adoring both sides of the road as we headed south on the Indian Nation Turnpike.

I couldn't help but think of Johnny Cash's ode to the Irish countryside, "Forty Shades of Green," which is also an apt description of Southeastern Oklahoma's scenery in the springtime.

As we passed a roadside portable electronic sign that advised in bright lights to "Enjoy the Eclipse," a song on the radio grabbed my attention.

That's when D.J. told me he'd tuned in to Spotify, which had put together a five-hour eclipse playlist.

What better to listen to as we headed toward what we hoped would the first total eclipse of the sun either of us had witnessed? I said "hoped," because the increasing cloud cover overhead as we headed south left no guarantee that we would be able to witness the celestial phenomenon that afternoon.

After a couple of songs played, I grabbed a pen and paper and began jotting down the titles which interested me.

"You never know when it might come in handy," I said to Derrick as he drove us on our way. (See, it already is!)

I didn't write down the title of every single song on the eclipse playlist. Some didn't interest me and others seemed like too much of a stretch to try and reach the eclipse theme, or even a sun, moon or stars theme.

I soon started making my own predictions of what might be played. Although we would likely arrive at our destination prior to the playlist's conclusion, it nevertheless provided plenty of amusement as we continued our journey.

I recognized the opening keyboard riffs to "Blinded By the Light," the version Manfred Mann's Earth Band recorded of the Bruce Springsteen-written song.

He included it on his very first Columbia Records album in 1973, but the British Manfred Mann's Earth Band's 1975 cover recording of "Blinded By the Light" shot all the to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Ha! At least the eclipse playlist programmers had a sense of humor, injecting a song about what could result to those who stared at the sun while trying to view the eclipse without wearing safety glasses.

Apparently keeping up the Springsteen-theme, another song by The Boss came over the airwaves, "Dancing in the Dark" — his synthesizer-driven recording that held the #2 spot for four weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1984.

That soon followed with U2's "Staring at the Sun" from the band's 1997 album, "Pop." Some of the songs lyrics would prove prophetic a couple of hours later when the eclipse began and those watching looked upward, as Bono sang "I'm not the only one, staring at the sun."

As we continued on our journey, Derrick passed a vehicle with Minnesota license plates headed in the same direction we were, showing the total eclipse forecast for parts of Southeastern Oklahoma was drawing visitors from all over the country — and from overseas as well, we would soon learn.

While our journey continued, The Beatles "I'll Follow the Sun" played. Included on their "Beatles '65" album in the U.S., it featured Paul McCartney on lead vocals and John Lennon singing high harmony. With acoustic guitars at the forefront, they sounded like an English version of the Everly Brothers, especially on the bridge.

As the song played, I thought that's exactly what we're doing — we're following the sun. On a day with partly cloudy skies in the forecast, we were hoping to find the sun shining through once we reached our destination.

What do we have next? "Waiting for the Sun" by The Doors, followed with "The Final Countdown" by Europe and "Mr. Blue Sky" by Electric Light Orchestra. Yes, I can see how all of those songs fit the day's eclipse theme.

At one point, an updated version of "Shuffle Off to Buffalo" played, a song dating all the way back to the 1933 move musical "42nd Street."

I wondered what in the heck that had to do with the eclipse, until I remembered that like other cities ranging from Dallas to Montreal in Quebec, Canada, Buffalo lay in the path of totality.

Finally, a song I predicted might make the eclipse playlist came over the airways, The Beatles again, with "Good Day Sunshine." McCartney said he wrote the song after being inspired by John Sebastian and his song, "Daydream," recorded by Sebastian's band, the Lovin' Spoonful. Yes, I hear the resemblance in the chord structure to both songs.

What? There's a surprise! "Dark Star" by the Grateful Dead. I prepared to kick back while the Grateful Dead embarked on one of their cosmic instrumental jams, but it was not to be. This was the rarely heard single version which lasted only 2:48.

Still, some of the lyrics would prove prophetic: "Shall we go, you and I while we can, through the transitive nightfall of diamonds." That's because later that afternoon, some of those who witnessed the total solar eclipse, referred to the eclipsed sun appearing as it was circled by diamonds.

Oh man! How could I miss predicting this song would make the eclipse playlist — "Ain't No Sunshine" by the great Bill Withers.

Ironically, as he sang the lyrics "Ain't no sunshine when she's gone," a thick bunch of clouds moved overhead, literally blocking out the sunlight.

I couldn't help but think of the Pink Floyd song and album, "Obscured By Clouds" — which of course led to "Dark Side of the Moon."

And so it went. We were treated to "Bad Moon Rising," the 1969 hit single by Creedence Clearwater Revival.

Like all of CCR's top ten singles, it peaked at #2. Believe it or not, CCR never had a record reach #1 in the U.S. — although some of their albums did reach the top spot.

Yeah baby! "Fly Me to the Moon" in the enduring version by Frank Sinatra sounded over the speakers, a good call for playlist inclusion.

Then finally the song I'd said earlier in the trip should definitely make the playlist selection — Cat Stevens' "Moonshadow" from his 1971 album "Teaser and the Firecat."

As we neared our destination at Beavers Bend State Park, one of the last songs I heard on the eclipse playlist sounded through the speakers — "Aquarius/Let The Sunshine In" by the 5th Dimension.

Later, I thought of The Beatles song as Derrick and I literally ended up following the sun that afternoon.

We decided not to take a chance to wait and see if the clouds would break over Beavers Bend State Park as the announced time of the total eclipse neared.

We jumped into his SUV and headed south toward Broken Bow, where we — and everyone else in town— were rewarded when the sun broke through the clouds in time for optimum eclipse viewing.

Oh, and the first song that grabbed my attention while listening to the radio's eclipse playlist?

"Total Eclipse of the Heart" — the hit song by Welsh singer Bonnie Tyler (who always sounded a little like Rod Stewart to me).

Soon after Derrick and I arrived at Beavers Bend State Park, we met with Oklahoma Secretary of Tourism, Wildlife and Heritage Shelley Zumwalt.

I noticed she wore an eclipse-themed T-shirt and after I saw the lettering on it, immediately surmised it most have been an official shirt sanctioned by the state for the rare event.

It also referenced Tyler's hit song from 1983 as determined by the lettering on the front of the shirt:

"Total Eclipse of the Parks."